USJames Baker Fights Back Tears During Emotional Eulogy for Best Friend George H.W. Bush in Texas

20:05 06 december 2018

20:05 06 december 2018 Source:
people.com

I wasn't supposed to like George H.W. Bush -- Then I got to know him

I first met George H.W. Bush, who died Friday at age 94, not long before he was elected as Ronald Reagan’s vice president in 1980. At the time, if anyone was predisposed not to like the future vice president and president, it was me. In 1980 I was holding my first job in politics, working as a press aide to former Texas Gov. John B. Connally – who, like Bush and Ronald Reagan, was seeking the 1980 Republican presidential nomination. None of Connally’s aides had anything nice to say about Bush. Apparently, Texas wasn’t big enough for the two of them. I had no personal knowledge of Bush and therefore, no reason to doubt the negative comments.

George Herbert Walker Bush (June 12, 1924 – November 30, 2018) was an American statesman and Republican Party politician who served as the 41st President of the United States from 1989 to 1993.

George W . Bush praises the ' best father' in emotional eulogy . During the final moments of his eulogy , Bush 's voice broke and he fought back tears as he Jon Meacham, his biographer, was the first eulogist and told the story of Bush 's plane being shot down during World War II and how he was

Not only was Jim Baker the former secretary of state for George H.W. Bush, he was also a close personal friend.

Baker, who was by the 41st president’s side when he died last Friday at age 94, delivered an emotional eulogy during the memorial service on Thursday at St. Martin’s Episcopal Church in Houston, the same church where services for Bush’s wife, Barbara, were held in April.

Calling Bush “a truly beautiful human being,” Baker started, “For more than 60 years, George Herbert Walker Bush has been my friend, and he’s been my role model.”

Mulroney to deliver eulogy for George H.W. Bush: 'One of nature's true gentlemen'

In an interview, he lauded Bush's life in three areas: on Canada-U.S. affairs, international leadership and basic decency. On Canada-U.S. issues, he credited Bush for a pair of achievements — the original NAFTA and the 1991 bilateral acid-rain treaty. "George Bush's legacy with regard to Canada was huge. It would rank with the greatest in modern history," Mulroney said. "He was the one who made possible two major events in the history of Canada." Mulroney said he tried unsuccessfully to persuade the late President Ronald Reagan for years to tackle the then-pressing acid-rain problem damaging the continent's waters.

Former President George W . Bush held back tears during his emotional eulogy for his father, former President George H . W . Bush . USA TODAY.

George W . Bush Cries During Emotional Eulogy of Father George H . W In the emotional eulogy , George W ., 72, spoke fondly of Bush Sr., telling the assembled crowd of Apparently it paired well with the steak Baker had delivered from Mortons,” he recalled to knowing laughs from the assembly.

“Today, as we entrust his soul to heaven, his name to history and his memory to our hearts, I must begin with an apology,” Baker said. “I am about to do something you always hated and that your mother always told you not to do: brag about yourself.”

As Baker reviewed Bush’s political career, he asserted that Bush “became one of our nation’s finest presidents and, beyond any doubt, our nation’s very best one-term president.”

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“For millions and millions across the globe, the world became a better place because George Bush occupied the White House for four years,” he said. “He was not considered a skilled speaker, but his deeds were quite eloquent, and he demonstrated their eloquence by carving them into the hard granite of history.”

“They expressed his moral character, and they reflected his decency, his boundless kindness and consideration of others, his determination always to do the right thing, and always to do that to the very best of his ability,” Baker added.

Historian and presidential biographer Jon Meacham admitted George H.W. Bush was an "imperfect" man during his powerful — and, at times, light-hearted — eulogy at Wednesday's funeral at the Washington National Cathedral.

He became a close friend of George H . W . Bush and worked for Bush 's unsuccessful 1970 campaign for the United States Senate. Baker ran Bush 's unsuccessful campaign for the 1980 Republican presidential nomination, but made a favorable impression on the Republican nominee, Ronald Reagan.

Former President George W . Bush delivered his eulogy to his father at Washington National Cathedral on Wednesday. President George H . W . Bush was praised by his son as "one of the best fathers a son or daughter could have." Full speech: George W . Bush holding back tears , eulogizes father.

“His deeds for his fellow man always spoke for him,” Baker said. “Give someone else a hand, he would say, and he did. When a friend is hurting, show that you care, he would say, and he did. Be kind to people he would say, and he was.”

He also related a funny anecdote. “I’ve always been proud that George Bush used to describe our relationship as one of big brother and little brother,” he said. “He used to say that one of the things he liked best about me was that I would always tell him what I thought even when I knew he didn’t want to hear it.”

“Then we would have a spirited discussion about that issue, but he had a very effective way of letting me know when the discussion was over,” he continued. “He would look at me and say, ‘Baker, if you’re so smart, why am I president and you’re not?'”

“My hope is that in remembering the life of George Herbert Walker Bush and in honoring his accomplishments, we will see that we are really praising what is best about our nation,” he said. He choked up and cried as he concluded.

When George W. Bush was told his father George H.W. Bush "only had minutes to live" last week, the former president immediately called him. The caretaker who answered the phone at the time told Bush his father had been silent most of the day, though he noted George H.W. Bush would likely be able to hear him if he spoke up. So, he handed the 94-year-old the phone as Bush began to say his final goodbye. "I said, "Dad, I love you and you've been a wonderful father,'" Bush recalled as he delivered his eulogy Wednesday at the Washington National Cathedral. "And the last words he would ever say on Earth were, 'I love you, too.

Mulroney Fights Back Tears In Eulogy For George H . W . Bush . Former Canadian Prime Minister Brian Mulroney, center, shakes hands with former President George W . Bush , right, after speaking during the State Funeral for former President George H . W . Bush at the National Cathedral

George W . Bush breaks down in tears as he says farewell to 'the best father a son or daughter could have' in moving eulogy at state funeral Former Canadian Prime Minister Brian Mulroney praised Bush , a friend for decades, as a resolute and determined president whom foreign leaders respected.

Bush’s grandson George Prescott Bush, who is the Texas land commissioner, also gave a eulogy, while his granddaughter Barbara Bush and her cousins delivered a reading.

On Tuesday, at the fourth and final Washington D.C. service, longtime Bush family pastor, Reverend Dr. Russell Levenson, Jr. recounted how Bush spent his final hours on Nov. 30 with Baker. “Secretary Baker was at the foot of the president’s bed and toward the end, Jim Baker rubbed and stroked the president’s feet — for perhaps half an hour,” Levenson said during his eulogy at the state funeral in the National Cathedral.

Baker, who was seated in a pew next to his wife, lowered his head and sobbed as Levenson continued, “The president smiled at the comfort of his dear friend. Here I witnessed a world leader who was serving a servant who had been our world’s leader.”

“He had a very gentle and peaceful passing. It was a sweet situation,” Baker told Fox News Sunday, fondly describing his late best friend as “an extraordinarily consequential president of the United States, particularly in the arena of foreign affairs.”

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George W . Bush Cries Delivering Eulogy for George H . W . Bush . On Wednesday, at former President George H . W . Bush ‘s funeral at Washington National Cathedral Apparently it paired well with the steak Baker had delivered from Mortons,” he recalled to knowing laughs from the assembly.

George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician and businessman who served as the 43rd President of the United States from 2001 to 2009.

Baker also spoke with CNN’s State of the Union, sharing an anecdote from Bush’s passing. “When I showed up at 7 o’clock in the morning, one of the aides who assisted him physically said, ‘Mr. President, Secretary Baker is here,’ ” he recalled. “And he opened both eyes, he looked at me. He said, ‘Hey, Bake, where are we going today?’ And I said, ‘Well, Jefe,’ I said, ‘We’re going to heaven.’ He said, ‘Good, that’s where I want to go.’ Little did I know or did he know, of course, that by 10 o’clock that night he’d be in heaven.”

Baker, who also worked as Bush’s White House chief of staff, added, “I’m going to miss him. What a beautiful, beautiful human being. A friend of 60 years.”

Bush and Baker first became close as tennis partners at the Houston Country Club in the late 1950s and would later form a political partnership. Baker led both Bush’s unsuccessful 1970 campaign for the U.S. Senate and unsuccessful campaign for the 1980 Republican presidential nomination. Though he served as White House chief of staff and secretary of the Treasury for President Ronald Reagan, Baker joined Bush’s successful 1988 presidential campaign.

The former commander-in-chief’s body will later travel on a train pulled by a special locomotive, No. 4141, from Houston to College Station, where Bush’s presidential library is located on the Texas A&M University campus. He will be buried next to his late wife, Barbara Bush, and their daughter Robin, who passed away in 1953 at the age of three

George H.W. Bush's Secret Service detail signs off with a heartfelt message.
The Secret Service had a touching message for the president, code-named "Timberwolf," after protecting him for nearly 40 years.

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George Herbert Walker Bush (June 12, 1924 – November 30, 2018) was an American statesman and Republican Party politician who served as the 41st President of the United States from 1989 to 1993.

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George W . Bush Cries During Emotional Eulogy of Father George H . W In the emotional eulogy , George W ., 72, spoke fondly of Bush Sr., telling the assembled crowd of Apparently it paired well with the steak Baker had delivered from Mortons,” he recalled to knowing laughs from the assembly.

James Baker - Wikipedia

He became a close friend of George H . W . Bush and worked for Bush 's unsuccessful 1970 campaign for the United States Senate. Baker ran Bush 's unsuccessful campaign for the 1980 Republican presidential nomination, but made a favorable impression on the Republican nominee, Ronald Reagan.

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Former President George W . Bush delivered his eulogy to his father at Washington National Cathedral on Wednesday. President George H . W . Bush was praised by his son as "one of the best fathers a son or daughter could have." Full speech: George W . Bush holding back tears , eulogizes father.

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Mulroney Fights Back Tears In Eulogy For George H . W . Bush . Former Canadian Prime Minister Brian Mulroney, center, shakes hands with former President George W . Bush , right, after speaking during the State Funeral for former President George H . W . Bush at the National Cathedral

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